The 5 R’s of Repurposing Blog Content

Content is a digital investment, and the blog is the king of kings.

Today, everyone from Fortune 500 companies to small business are blogging to increase their digital presence and boost their bottom line.

For all the hard work we put into creating blogs that add value and engage (because let’s face it, it’s no easy task to be constantly original and fresh!), it is smart to explore ways to extend the investment’s mileage by repurposing this content.

So, how can we do that?

Reformat

Ask yourself: can your blog translate into another medium or format?

Video is the where it is at, so it is worth considering if your content would work as a video, or even a live-streamed event like a workshop, Q&A or demonstration.

Does the content lend itself to visual representation? Could it be made into an infographic that could be used across channels?

If you’re content is particularly timely and newsworthy, could you repackage it as a media release?

To keep it simple, consider using the content in your next eNews; drip feeding it out as social media status updates; or plug it into a speech. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination!

Refresh

This is a similar process to how academic textbooks run multiple editions: reenergise your blog content by adding in some current information (stats, updates, breaking news, photos, charts etc). This will be reason enough to re-post or redistribute, but be sure to disclose that you’re posting an update, or your audience will think you’re trying to pull a fast one!

Replicate

If a blog topic was particularly well received, consider how you can mimic the format.

Similar to a refresh but more extensive, keep an eye out for opportunities to do the same thing (basically), again, but with all new information. A good example of this is annual or quarterly stats/reports: block it in to your content calendar so you don’t miss the opportunity to replicate your winning formula.

Reference

Are there any topics, or sub-topics in your blog that could support their own, standalone blogs? Review your content closely. This is a great way to fill up your content calendar and it also creates a nice sense of topical continuity for your audience.

Revisit

This is also known as the “follow up”, and is similar to a “refresh”, but rather than plugging new information into the original blog, you create an all new blog, but a really concise one. A follow up doesn’t have to be as comprehensive as the original because you actively direct the reader to the original post (link) for background or more information. A couple of paragraphs will suffice.